1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to produce cutting apparatus and, more specifically, to vegetable slicing and dicing apparatus.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art reveals various devices for slicing and dicing vegetables and other agricultural produce. For example, such devices are shown in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: No. 2,572,770, (Shadduck); No. 3,216,474, (Popeil); No. 2,153,407, (Bell); No. 2,250,028, (Miller); No. 3,112,781, (Popeil); No. 2,661,039, (Davis, et al); No. 3,924,501, (Cohen).
However, a study of slicers and dicers in actual use, either in homes or in commercial establishments, shows that, apparently, only one of the devices covered by those patents has been accepted. Further, the consumer use of such devices is very limited. One of the reasons for such limited use is that, the devices shown in the listed patents and those in actual use today, but not in the patents, require relatively large forces to be applied to the upper cutting die, which in all cases in the prior art has the cutting edges of such die terminating in a common cutting-edge plane. Experience shows that if an onion, for example, is placed in a slicer having such an upper cutting die, the force required to pass the die through the cutting knives while slicing the onion is beyond the strength of the ordinary housewife. Thus, the housewife resorts to ordinary slicing with a knife and, to her, the prior art slicers and dicers have little utility.
It is an object of this invention, therefore, to overcome the general inconveniences and disadvantages of the prior art devices, as set forth hereinbefore.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a produce cutter which requires minimal operating force.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a device which can, alteratively, slice or dice agricultural produce with ease and simplicity.